Iris
by Kelsey Blue
Summary: Iris lost the most important people in her life, her parents. Filled with agony she ventures into the streets near her home in New York City. This leads to a run-in with the flock. Will they be able to help her? Or will her pain never fade away?
1. Shattered

I jogged up the steps of the stoop leading to the door of my home. Even before I turned the bronze handle of the knob and opened the door, I could hear the faint sound of yelling and

the smashing of objects. I could tell they must be ceramic plates for I heard the jarring echo of shattering.

_Not again._

I hated when my mom and dad fought. My dad always got really violent, usually taking his anger out on my mom and sometimes me. I hesitantly opened the door only to have the shards

of a plate, just victimized to my father's throwing, hit my legs. I winced at the stinging in my shins. My dad didn't even spare me a glance. My mom quickly turned her head toward me.

What I read in her eyes frightened me.

Shame. Guilt.

But that wasn't what put the chill down my spine. It was the pure terror that flashed in her hazel eyes. Terror for me. My father was still yelling at my mom. "That's it! I swear to god I'm

going to kill you!!!," he yelled with hate.

That surprised me. He's hurt my mom but I always believed that he still loved her, deep inside. With a guttural growl he stormed to the open door

of the basement and hastily stomped down the stairs. As soon as he was out of earshot, my mom ran up to me.

"Honey, Iris, you have to listen to me. Please. Go under the bed in your room and stay there no matter what you hear. Don't you dare come out. Promise me.," she quickly and firmly told

me in a hushed tone. I was confused and more scared than I had ever been in my entire 15 years.

"Mom, I d-don't understand…," I stammered out. "_Promise me_," she begged. I didn't know what to do but give a faint, "I promise." My mom looked visibly relieved until

we started to hear signs of my dad about to ascend the basement stairs. She looked me in the eye and put her hands on my shoulders.

"I love you. More than anything in the world. I will always love you no matter what happens. Remember that." I started shaking. "Mom, you're scaring me." My mom glanced behind her at

the basement door. My dad could be heard thundering up the stairs now. My mom frantically whispered, "Go. Go now. I love you." She kissed me on the forehead then pushed me toward

the kitchen door.

Still seriously confused and frightened, I half ran-half stumbled down the hallway and into my bedroom. I practically dove under my bed after hastily pushing up the white bed-skirt.

Breathing heavily, I strained my ears to try to listen to what was going on in the kitchen. All I could decipher were a flurry of loud unintelligible words followed by a lot of slamming. And

gasps of pain.

_Mom._

He's laid injury to my mom before but never at this level of intensity. My mom's words rang through me head. Stay there no matter what you hear. There was no way I was going to listen

to her. This was a promise I was going to have to break. Visibly shaking, I reached to pull myself out from underneath my bed.

A half second later, the ear-splitting sound of a gunshot resounded through the house causing me to freeze in my tracks. I stopped thinking. I seemed to have lost control of my body. All

I could do was lay there half-posed to spring out from under my bed. The air around me took on a still, eery, almost fragile quality. The sound of uneven footsteps, gradually growing

louder, cut through the cloudy dream state I was temporarily residing in. My door flew open with an almost deafening crash. I heard the footsteps enter my room. I knew it was vitally

crucial for me to stay still and not make a sound. It didn't matter. I couldn't have been able to move even if I had wanted to. I heard the person come closer to the bed. The floorboards

creaked. I had never noticed the creaking before. Huh. With a shuffle the person unsteadily sat on the edge of my bed. I could hear the sound of heavy breathing. There were the sharp

snaps of a gun being loaded. It was utterly silent for several moments until a whisper floated through the air. "I love you Iris." Then the rocket of another gunshot went off followed by an

absolutely sickening splatter. And just as the plates had only minutes before, my world shattered.

* * *

**Ok. That was my first fanfic. I just had this story in my head for the longest time and I was finally like, "Ok, Ok. I'll write it already." I'm not exactly sure what kind of spacing and paragraphs I should use to make it easier for people to read but I did the best I could. I'm sorry its really depressing. I got the idea from the show Lost. Umm, I'm not sure if anybody would want me to even continue. I would love for feedback because without it, due to my lack of self esteem, I will not post another chapter. I will welcome criticism becuase I want to become a better writer! If there is another chapter, the flock will enter the story. Thanks.**


	2. Forget

I was trapped. Trapped in a nightmare. I pinched my arm. I didn't wake up.

I was aware that my arms were shaking uncontrollably and my breaths were coming out in short frantic gasps. I was afraid to move out from underneath my bed. I was afraid at what I

would witness. I knew that once I saw these things they would never be erased from my memory. As long as I was underneath my bed the things that I knew in my head didn't have to

become a reality. Once I came out, there was no going back. I took a deep, unsteady breath then slowly, hesitantly moved aside the bed-skirt with my hand.

The first thing I saw was blood. A pool of it. A shiver passed through my body. I continued my way out from underneath the bed, pushing myself up with my arms. Standing, I stared

straight ahead at my doorway. All I could hear was my breathing and the steady dripping of what I assumed was blood. I was petrified to turn around. To look at what lay upon my bed.

Before I moved, I had to detach myself from the situation. This wasn't happening. I closed my eyes and shuffled my feet so that I was facing the opposite way. I stole myself a moment

before opening my eyes.

My dad was crumpled on his side, laying on the blue comforter of my bed. There was now blood stained on it, making it appear almost patriotic. My father's hand was loosely clasped

around a small, black hand gun. I forced myself to look at his face. His eyes were open though completely empty. The back of his head was completely blown open. I looked slightly to my

left and saw my once white wall, now painted with blood and other _stuff_.

It was funny how only moments before I was desperately drawing air into my lungs. Now I felt as if there was no air to breathe at all.

Unable to stare any longer, I quickly turned and bounded out of my room. I fell against the wall of the hallway, trying hard not to lose my mind. I still had to see my mom. The thought of

my mom gave me the strength to put my body into action. I ran into the kitchen and froze. My mom was lying on the floor in an unnatural position. There was a pool of blood surrounding

the area in which she lay. She had multiple cuts on her face. Her eyes were open. The last time I had seen her eyes they were filled with emotions of terror…and love for me. Now, there

was nothing. She was dead. My father killed her.

With a scream, I dashed to her side. "Mom! Mom! No. No no no no no." As I said this, I was touching her face and grabbing her hands. I felt the stickiness of blood on her chest. I pivoted

my head so that I could discover what the origin was. How could I have missed it? There was a hole directly over where her heart must be. Then I remembered. The gunshot from before.

An agonized sob escaped from me as I picked up my mom's head and gently placed it in my lap. "Mom. You can't be dead! I love you! I love you, too!," I sobbed. I shut her eyes with my

fingertips. The idea of them never opening again caused another torrent of sobs. How could my _dad_ do this? _How?_

I had to leave. If I stayed any longer I don't think I would ever be able to leave my mother. I carefully returned my mother's head to the floor. I kissed her forehead. "Bye mom. I'm so

sorry I didn't help you. I'm so _sorry._ I love you. I love you so much." I pushed myself into a standing position. Without another word, I ran out of my house forever. There was no way I

was ever coming back. Shell-shocked, I began running down the sidewalk, my feet pounding against the cracked pavement. Perhaps, the distance put between me and my home could

help me forget.

* * *

**Sorry about this chapter. It's really depressing. I promise that the flock will be in the next chapter. I want to thank the only person who read and reviewed this story so far. I guess I'll wait for another review before posting another chapter. Even if nobody reviewed, I would probably wind up posting it up anyway just because... Oh, and are my chapters too short? I'm not sure...If there's anything you don't like about it, please tell me!**


	3. Alone

After running for a solid hour, I turned into an alleyway. The sky was gradually growing darker as the sun made its escape toward the horizon. I took in my surroundings. There was a

brown dumpster along the right side of the alley. Other then that, along with some stray pieces of garbage, the alley was completely empty.

Glad for the privacy, I scurried to the side of the dumpster not facing the opening of the alley. I sat down, not even caring whether or not I was sitting on a half-eaten bologna sandwich

or something. My brain was barely repressing the images of my dead parents. I felt like my brains were about to implode.

_Brains._

At that thought, unwelcome images played across my vision. Feeling sick to my stomach, I turned my head to the side and threw up the contents of my stomach. I wiped my mouth with

the back of my hand. It was becoming completely impossible to keep my cool. I started shaking, unable to control the memories any longer. I curled into the fetal position. I felt like I was

going to die. Actually, death would be welcome. This pain…it was like nothing I had ever experienced before. I felt like there was a bowling ball in my chest holding me down. My heart

was squished under the pressure of it. My fingers were clutched in my hair unsuccessfully trying to suppress what I was feeling.

That was when I heard the footsteps. I didn't care who they were. Whether they would or wouldn't cause me harm didn't even matter to me. I was neutral on the subject. A whisper was

carried to my ears.

"Max. There's somebody here."

The alley became immediately quiet. I stopped my breathing. All of a sudden the footsteps returned, although I noticed there weren't as many this time. They were coming closer to where

I was hidden. I made a split-second decision. Whoever they were, I was not going to let them see any weakness. I owed it to my mom to be brave before I died. That is, if these people

were going to kill me. I was increasingly hoping that they were. I didn't feel like answering any of the questions that would undoubtedly ensue if they were not a street gang or

whatever.

I sat up and leaned my back against the brick wall behind me. I stretched my legs out and crossed them. I began to twiddle my thumbs in a manner that said, "I'm so bored I have

nothing better to do than to sit behind a smelly dumpster all day." At least, that's the image I was going for. A second later, two figures appeared in front of me. They were teenagers,

maybe around my age. My first thought was "Oh so it is a gang." But then I really looked at them.

The teen on the left was a tall girl with long, wavy, blondish-brownish hair. She wore scruffy looking jeans and worn out sneakers. She had on a dark blue windbreaker that also

looked a bit dirty. I looked at her face. She had pretty brown eyes…that at that moment, were staring daggers at me. Huh. To her left stood a boy a couple inches taller than the girl. He

was adorned in all black clothes, that like the girls' looked quite worn out. He had longish black hair that kind of fell into his eyes. Not that it mattered…his face was completely impassive.

They actually didn't really look like a gang…but who am I to judge? We just stayed there for a couple moments. They seemed to be taking me in as well. Finally the girl spoke up.

"Who are you?, she said using an icy, no-nonsense voice. I was confused. Why would a gang want to know my name? Should I tell them the truth? I thought for a moment…nah.

"Stella.," I said. Immediately, a little girl with wavy blonde curls hopped into my vision. She only looked about 5 or 6 years old. She tugged on the girl's sleeve. The girl looked down at her.

"She's lying.," she quietly said. The older girl quickly looked back at me. With a dead scary look on her face she opened her mouth about to say something probably equally scary, but I

interrupted her.

"You know what? She's right. I am lying. What can I say? Stella's such a nice name. Don't you think?," I said this with calm, and fake I might add, innocence. Angel turned her head

towards me and looked right into my eyes. Then she looked back to the other girl and boy.

"Her name's Iris," she said in a self-satisfied voice. What! How could she have known that? I quickly put my hand to my neck to check whether I was wearing a necklace with my name on

it or whatever but I felt nothing.

"How do you know my name? Have we met?," I cautiously asked.

"It's none of your-," the older girl was cut off by the younger girl.

"I can read minds!," she said with a proud smile on her face.

"Angel!," the older girl hissed. Then all three of them looked at me waiting for my reaction. I'd had too many shocks today to be shocked by this. The revelation that there were people

who could read minds was miniscule compared to-I cut that thought off. If I was going to stay strong I would have to watch my thoughts from now on.

All I said was, "Oh. Well, that makes sense." The trio looked slightly taken aback besides of course the mind reader. She just looked at with searching eyes. I could guess what she was

trying to get from my mind but I wasn't going to let her have it.

"Now this isn't very fair. You know my name but I don't know yours.," I said. The older girl regained her composure.

"We'll tell you as soon as you tell us why your covered in blood.," she said using a steely voice.

My breath caught in my throat. I looked down at my clothes and winced at what I saw. Blood. All over me. Just like it was all over my h-No. I cannot think about it. How could I have not

noticed? I took a deep breath willing myself not to shake. I looked back up. The boy's face was still stone-like and the older girl's face was still icy but with a hint of curiosity. The little girl,

Angel, looked at me with confusion and sadness. I couldn't tell them the truth.

"It's not blood. It's ketchup. I'm a _very_ messy eater.," I said with complete seriousness.

Angel began to say, "She's—" but was cut off again by the older girl. "I know, Angel."

With that she quickly bent down and picked me up with both hands by the front of my shirt. She roughly pushed me against the wall. I didn't even have time to react.

"You're going to tell me the truth or I'm going to force it out of you. Are you working for Itex?," she practically growled at me. I was sick of playing pretend. I let all of the fight leave my

eyes. I grasped her hand and forced it over my throat.

"Kill me. Please. Do it now.," I pleaded. Her eyes widened in surprise. I continued, "Quickly if you don't mind. I'm in a bit of a rush."

Now she completely let me go and backed a few steps away. She was definitely taken aback. Even Mr. Silent had his eyebrows raised in surprise. I was kind of disappointed. He was

doing such a great job.

The older girl, still looking at me, asked Angel, "Is she telling the truth?" Angel started to cry. "Yea. Her thoughts are horrible, Max. _Horrible_. But she's not from Itex."

I didn't know what to think or feel anymore. All I knew was that I was stooping down to my dad's level. I was being weak just like my dad was before he-I couldn't take it anymore. With

a roar of pain and fury I whipped my body around and slammed my fist into the brick wall behind me. I heard the snapping of bones. Immediately my hand flared with pain but it was

nothing compared to how I felt inside. I just wanted these people to leave me alone. If they weren't going to kill me than I wanted nothing to do with them because the only way they

were going to get answers out of me was over my dead body. Angel gasped undoubtedly about what she heard from my thoughts.

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!," I shrieked. She immediately started to cry harder and the older girl, Max, bent down and tried to comfort her. While she did this she kept on throwing me glances

that would have instantly killed small puppies but I didn't care. I was too far gone.

I lost control of my body. I began to shake, and shake, and shake. My breath was coming out in gasps, hyperventilating. I felt like there was no air, as if the trees had decided to give up

on making oxygen. I knew this feeling well. I was having a panic attack. I had started having panic attacks when I was 5. The doctor prescribed me pills that I would take if I felt one

coming on. I frantically put my hands into my pockets where I usually kept a few just in case, but they were empty.

"Crap," I gasped. So this was how I was going to die. Cause that's how I felt. Like I was going to die. The boy finally broke his silence.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." At least nothing that he could fix. My voice brought Max's attention back to me.

"Nothing? Unless that's how you usually breathe?," she said sarcastically. "Iggy." I heard footsteps and a very tall strawberry blonde-haired boy came into view.

"What?," he said. Max gestured to me. "She's not working for Itex so I guess we should help her. Can you tell what's wrong?" Iggy nodded and knelt down in front of me. I could tell that

he was blind. His blue eyes were hazy and not focused on my face.

"Are you hurt?" I just looked at him as I continued to hyperventilate. Hurt? Where was I not hurting?

I answered, "Can…you please…just leave me…_alone_?" My voice cracked on the last word. For alone was what I was. I had nobody.

"Like we're just gonna leave you like this. What's wrong?," he actually said this with concern. I decided to tell him. I didn't even care anymore.

"Panic attack.," I gasped out. Max looked at me while the other boy remained silent. Shocker.

"Can't you just stop panicking?," she said in a "duh" voice.

"S'not…that easy. I usually…have pills…but they must…have fell out…of my pocket… when I…," I almost slipped, "At my house."

Max gave me a look like I should have just said this from the get-go and said, "Then we'll take you back to your house so you can get them. Ok? Fang, you'll co-"

"No! There's no way in hell I'm going back there!,' I yelled while whipping my hand away from Iggy.

"Well, you're going to have to if-," I interrupted Max again. "I'd rather _die_.," I hissed.

"Then Fang and I will just go. Just give us directions. Ok?"

"You can't go to my house."

"Are you going to tell us why not?"

"No." I sighed giving in. I knew that they were going to find out but the look on Max's face told me that it would be useless to argue. I reluctantly gave them directions. They didn't even

write them down but whatever.

As they left, two other kids joined us. There was a little boy, around the age of 7 or 8, who by the look of his blonde hair and blue eyes must be related to Angel. With him was a girl who

looked older than the boy and Angel but younger than Max, Fang, and Iggy. She had dark skin and a mass of wild looking black hair that was tied back into a ponytail. I was told that the

boy was Gazzy (don't ask), and the girl was Nudge. Gazzy looked at me with curiosity and Nudge looked like she wanted to say something but, with what looked like much effort, didn't.

Iggy and Angel sat down on either side of me. Iggy started to quietly whisper to Gazzy and Nudge, probably telling them about me and my insanity. Angel still seemed upset. She looked

at me with big blue eyes that were filled with sadness. She was the only one who knew what I was feeling. She grabbed my good hand and squeezed it in a comforting way. I didn't

want anyone's pity for something that was my fault. I pulled my hand away from hers and placed it with the other hand that was wrapped around my knees. This was my punishment. I

had to deal with this alone for although surrounded by people, that's what I was. Alone.

* * *

**Sorry it took me a little bit longer to get this chapter up. One reason why it took me so long is that it's longer than the previous chapters. Also, I had a lot of trouble on coming up with what the flock would do in this situation. Like what they would say and stuff. I've never done this kind of thing before so I hope it's ok. If it's not please tell me how I can make it better. Thank you for taking the time to read my story! It means a lot to me. **


	4. Problems

**Oops. I realized that I never put a up a disclaimer. So here it is...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride. There.**

Max POV

As soon as Fang and I were out of Iris's sight, we ducked into another alleyway and shrugged our windbreakers off. Silently, we unfurled our wings. They almost spanned the whole

width of the alley. With a running start, Fang and I flung ourselves into the night sky. Like always, I reveled in the brush of the wind washing against my feathers. I reviewed the

directions that Iris had given us. I shifted my direction a bit to the east. Fang followed suit. I was feeling more than a little curious as to what presided in Iris's house that could make her

so…_agonized. _I glanced at Fang and knew that he was thinking the same thing. It couldn't be something _that_ horrible, could it? I mean, her dog probably died or she got into a fight with

her parents, or something…

"Fang, what do you think we're gonna find at her house?"

"Dunno."

"Maybe we should be on guard just in case."

He nodded then said, "We're here."

We began to make our descent toward another secluded alleyway near the house. We touched down on the ground lightly, our feet making almost no sound. We tucked our wings in and

pulled our windbreakers on over our heads. We stayed silent as we walked out of the alley and made our way down the sidewalk that led to the stoop of Iris's home. We walked up the

steps then paused.

"Um…should we ring the doorbell? Her parents might be home...," I asked Fang. I didn't know what to do. If someone was home we probably wouldn't be able to get her medication

unless we broke in and stole it.

Fang seemed to be reading my mind. "I think we should just go in. If someone's inside we'll just try not to get caught as we get the pills, or whatever."

He looked at me, then at the door. "Ladies first.," he said while gesturing his hands at the door. A smirk was playing on his lips.

I snorted. "Now you decide to be the gentleman.," I softly said as my hand clasped the doorknob then turned it. To my surprise, the door wasn't locked. I gave Fang a quick look then

opened the door.

Okay. Well I know this might sound weird but I was immediately hit with the unmistakable scent of blood. Fang raised his eyebrows and I knew he could smell it, too. I looked around to

realize that we were in a kitchen. It was pretty homey looking with all the little knickknacks on the counter, the oven mitt hanging on a hook positioned above the stove, and a grocery

list taped to the fridge.

Oh, and did I mention the freaking _body_ smack dab in the middle of the tiled floor? It was a woman and she was covered in blood. She had a hole in the middle of her chest as well as

some nasty-looking cuts on her face. A pool of blood fanned out from where she lay.

"Fang…," I whispered, "Do you see that?"

"Yea."

That was all it took for me to know that I wasn't just imagining it. Because for me, having crazy delusions is a distinct possibility seeing as to I already have a voice in my head. I slowly

walked over to the woman. I could tell that she must have been pretty but in death, not so much.

"She must have been shot.," I muttered mostly to myself. I felt as if I was hypnotized by the sight. This person had a life. A family, memories, and dreams. I felt a callused hand take my

own, breaking me out of my stupor.

"Come on. The medication isn't here." Fang whispered. Shaking my head, I turned around and we walked out of the kitchen and into a hallway.

I looked at Fang's face. To everybody else,his face would have been completely devoid of emotion but to me, I could see a flicker of horror reflected in his eyes.

"I guess we have our answer. Iris didn't want to go home because her mom was _murdered._," I said with a faint tremor to my voice. I am typically a tough person. I have seen some pretty

horrible things in my life but I had never seen a murdured human. I mean, I've seen experiments die but not like this.

"You okay?," Fang asked.

"Yea. I'm fine. Come on. It's probably in her room." We began to walk down the hallway, peering into the rooms, trying to discern whether a teenager inhabited it. There was one more

door left. I opened it walked into the room, completely unaware that there was a body already occupying it. When I had one foot in the doorway, I immediately I staggered back, tripping

over a fold in the carpet. Fang steadied me by grabbing onto my shoulders. He still hadn't entered the room.

"What is it?," he quickly said in a worried tone. I was in shock.

"There's a body on the bed. A dead body. There's blood everywhere." Fang let go of me and entered the room. He froze and stared. I walked in and stood beside him taking a better look

at the scene in front of us. A middle-aged man was crumpled on the bed with a gun lying in his hand. The back of his head was blown open which I'm guessing was the source of blood. I

wasn't lying before. There _was_ blood everywhere. It was on the ground in one giant pool. It was stained on the bedspread. It was splattered on one of the walls along with what I'm

assuming was brains.

"Holy crap.," Fang said. This was enough to even shock Fang, which believe me, is one step away from impossible.

I thought back to what Iris said. She had reluctantly told us that her medication might be under her bed. Now I understood why she was so adamant about not wanting to tell us.

"Fang…Iris said that her medication's under her bed. I'll…go get it." I took a step forward, totally not wanting to get near the body. I, Maximum Ride, was actually really grossed out by all

of the blood.

Fang put a hand on my shoulder. "No. I'll go get it."

"But-," he cut me off. "No.," he firmly said then proceeded to walk up to bed. He attempted to not step on the blood but that was pretty much inevitable. There was just so _much_. He

crouched down and lifted up the bedskirt. From where I was standing, I could clearly see the silver packaging that was usually associated with pills. He quickly grabbed them then quickly

made his way back to my side.

"Let's blow this popsicle stand.," I said with a confidence that I did not feel. Fang nodded and we preceded to walk out of the room, down the hallway, and out the front door. As soon as

my feet touched the sidewalk I took in a huge breath of air. Inside the house, the rampant smell of blood was suffocating so it was a relief to breathe in some fresh air. I could tell Fang

felt the same by the way his body became more relaxed. We walked back into the alleyway where we landed before.

"Fang?"

"Yea?" He looked at me with his dark eyes.

"What…what are we going to say to Iris? Those must have been her parents back there. They're both _dead._"

Fang thought for a moment. "Nothing. We'll just give her the medication and leave."

"I think we should make sure she has somewhere to go first. I mean, imagine how she must be feeling."

Fang looked like he didn't agree. I knew it wasn't because he was heartless or anything but because he was still suspicious. Paranoia is just another part of being a bird kid.

"Fine," he finally said, "but as soon as possible we're out of there. We don't need anybody else to worry about. We have our own problems."

"That we do.," I said as I whipped off my windbreaker and leaped into the sky, Fang right beside me.

* * *

**So there was chapter 4. I hope it wasn't too out of character. That was my first time at using a character's point of view. Whether you liked it or not please review! It makes me really happy. I especially want people who don't like it to review though so they can tell me how to improve! Thanks. **

**Oh and by the way. I saw Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince last night at midnight. It was AWESOME!!!**


	5. Angels

As I sat on the ground, hyperventilating and whatnot, I thought of my options.

1) I could leave the people around me so I wouldn't have to face Max and Fang when they came back. But I figured that wouldn't be the best idea considering I need my medication to

function properly.

2) I could stay, _then_ leave as soon as they give me my pills. Although that would ensue having to face Max and Fang. I don't know if I'll be able to bear their scrutiny. Because they'll _know_.

After a few moments, I decided 2 would be the best path to take. When they returned I would snatch my pills, mumble a quick thanks, then hightail my butt out of there.

The prickly sensation that informed me I was being watched compelled me to raise my head from its position on my knees. The 4 people that I was surrounded with were gazing at me in

confusion and concern. Angel scooted closer to me and clasped her small hand around my own. Her blue eyes seemed to get bigger and…and…more _angelic_, if that was possible.

"Please don't leave. We can help you. No matter what it is."

I just looked at her. I couldn't get mad at her for reading my mind while she had that look on her face…even if she did tell the others. How could I tell her that there was no way I could

stay? I didn't want to be near people. In fact, as soon as I've made my departure I plan on running as far away from human society as I possibly can. I needed to be alone. It was my

punishment.

Angel's eyes filled with tears and her hand clasped mine tighter. She read my mind again.

"You need people, Iris. You don't deserve to be punished."

I unwound my hand from hers. "Yes. I do." I whispered.

A moment later, Max and Fang entered the alley. I didn't even notice they were there until they were directly in front of me. I had to give them credit for their stealth. Jeez, they were like

ninjas. Especially Fang sporting his entirely black ensemble.

They just stood there silent for a couple seconds. I couldn't bring myself to look at their faces. I held my breath, waiting for them to start asking questions. But when they placed the

package of pills by my feet I realized that maybe there wouldn't be any questions. Quickly, I grabbed the pills, popped two out, and shoved them into my mouth. I swallowed, pocketed

the rest, then stood up. I still wasn't looking at their faces.

"Thanks", I mumbled as I practically ran passed them. I was still hyperventilating and more than slightly shaking but I didn't care. I had to get out of there. To where, I wasn't sure but

that didn't matter. I knew it was unsafe to wander the streets of New York City at night but I would take my chances. Anyway, whether I lived or not wasn't my number one worry at the

moment. To me, it didn't really matter.

"Max! You can't let her go! She's going to get hurt!" I heard Angel yell from behind me.

Goddamn, freaking mind reader! I began to run faster just in case they decided to come after me. Which a few moments later, they did. I was a pretty fast runner so I figured they

wouldn't be able to catch me. Plus I had a head start, so safety was almost a guarantee. I rounded the corner of the alley and out onto the sidewalk. My feet pounded against the

cement in quick steady beats. Even though it was night the streets were still swarming with taxis and cars blasting some kind of crunk music. As I was just about to pass another

alleyway I heard my pursuers' footsteps getting closer. On impulse I turned into the alley, jumping over a drunken hobo in the process. I ran down the alley hoping it would lead to an

adjacent street. But as I neared the end I saw that it was blocked by a tall metal gate. It would take me too much time to climb it. I may be fast but I was not a climber.

As I heard the footsteps behind me turn into the alley I scanned my surroundings for a place to hide. Spotting a trashcan I quickly ducked behind it. The footsteps drew nearer until finally

they were right in front of the fence. I held my breath and tried to erase my mind of any thoughts. They whispered some things to each other, but I couldn't quite make out the words.

Just as I thought my head was going to deflate from lack of oxygen, they started to make their way out of the alley. As soon as they passed me, I let out my breath in relief. All of a

sudden their footsteps came to halt.

"What is it, Iggy?" I heard someone say. I think it was Max.

"One second." Iggy said. Then I heard a pair of footsteps headed my way once again. Crap. I forced myself to be as still as possible even though my heart was thudding at like a

gazzilion beats per minute.

The footsteps stopped right in front of where I was hidden. The trashcan was shoved aside with a screech, and I came face to face with Iggy.

"Iris." he said, "Please just come with us so we can make sure you get to a safe place." How he knew I was there I had no idea.

"No. I don't need your help. Please, just leave me alone. I can take care of myself." I didn't say that I _would_ take care of myself. I quickly darted to my left towards the fence. I guess I

would take my chances with climbing anyway.

I didn't make it to the fence though. Iggy quick as lighting grabbed my arm and pulled me back to where I was. I struggled against him but I couldn't loosen his iron grip on my arm.

"Let go of me!," I growled. "I swear to God, I'll kill you."

As soon as I realized what I said I immediately stopped struggling. Although Iggy was still pulling me toward the others, my mind was far away, back at my house. I thought of what my

dad had said to my mother. _I swear to God I'm going to kill you._ That was almost exactly what I had just said.

I was brought back to the present by Max's voice. "Don't worry. We'll just get you to where you need to go then we'll leave you alone. Promise." That was when I flipped.

"No! You'll leave me alone _now_!" With that I punched Iggy in the face with my opposite arm and he relinquished his grip on my other arm. I darted back to the fence side of the alley

seeing as to the other side was blocked by Max's gang. When I got to the fence I jumped and got a handhold with my fingers. I feverishly started to climb while I heard the others yelling

at me to stop while running towards me. I reached the top and tried to pull myself over the edge. In my haste I must have launched myself over too hard for the next thing I knew the

ground was moving awfully fast towards my head. Too fast. I closed my eyes for impact only to stop mid-fall with a jolt. I realized that I was just hanging there upside down, the sleeves

of my shirt having been snagged at the top of the fence. Panicking, I thrashed trying to set myself free. With another jolt, my arms came free and I plummeted to the cement. I attempted

to put my arms out to block my fall but it was too late. With a clunk my head smashed onto the concrete. Pain burst into my head, spider-webbing, it seemed, to the rest of my body. I lay

there for a second, having forgotten what I was doing. But then I heard faint footsteps accompanied by yelling. I turned my head to see what the commotion was and was rewarded

with a sharp wave of pain. Little black spots appeared in my vision as I started to lose consciousness.

The last thing I saw was the 6 people take off their jackets and, get this…spreading their _wings. _One thought rang throughout my head before everything went black. _Angels._

* * *

**Okay. I finally updated. Thanks to one reviewer this chapter is finally up. I don't know if I'm allowed to mention names so I'm not going to. Sorry it took me so long to update. My excuses range from lack of confidence, to marching band, to a summer world history assignment. Ok, well I'll try to get the next chapter up sooner than I got this one up. So, I hope this chapter was ok. Please review if you like it! It makes my confidence go up. Also, review if you don't like it so I can try to improve! Thank you!**


	6. Nightmare

_I was in my bedroom. I looked out my window and saw that it was night. The crescent moon was shedding light through the window. The house was absolutely silent which was odd even at this _

_time. My dad almost always layed on the couch and watched tv till at least 2 in the morning. _

_"Mom!" My voice sounded loud in the silence. "Hello?" There was no answer. Just as I was about to __exit my room in order to find out where the heck my parents were, I heard footsteps. _

_"Hello?" This time I said it much quieter. No response. _

_The footsteps came closer and rounded the corner. My dad appeared in the doorway. I was relieved at first. I seriously thought it was going to be a robber or the boogeyman. But then I looked at _

_his face. He had this awful, scary look in his face. His eyebrows were pulled down in anger. I could see a glean of sweat shining on his forehead, which was slightly crinkled due to his eyebrows. His_

_ eyes were shining with pain and what I could only call madness. I knew that expression well, but this was something more intense. Then he shakily raised his right hand. That was when I _

_noticed the gun he was holding. _

_"Dad. Dad, what're you doing?" My voice was shaking. "Where's Mom?" _

_He didn't respond. He just raised the gun so that it was level with my head. _

_"Dad! What-wha-Are you going to shoot me?" He just kept looking at me. "Please! I don't understand! What did I do? I-I'm your daughter!" He remained silent. I didn't know what else to say. I _

_was breathless. I was gripped with a terror I had never experienced before. _

_Finally he spoke. "I love you Iris." And that was when he pulled the trigger._

I bolted upright into a sitting position, my hand clutched to my chest. I was gasping wildly. My shirt was sticking to my skin in a cold sweat. I finally gained enough consciousness to realize

that it was just a nightmare. But then I remembered what really happened and I felt as if I was sucked right back into the nightmare.

"Oh," I almost groaned while putting my head into my hands. I opened my eyes and saw the floor…which was made of stone. I immediately jumped up. That was a mistake. My head was

hit with a jarring pain. I put my hands to my head and waited a couple seconds for it to pass. When my head felt clear, clear as in not about to split open, I took my hands off of my head

and got my first look at my surroundings.

I was encompassed in stone walls and the atmosphere was slightly cool. There were stalagmites hanging from the ceiling. I realized that I must be in a cave. Then I saw the 6 figures

gathered in front of me, arc style. There was a girl and two boys that looked around my age. The girl was staring at me in what I guess was maybe a comforting tone. It didn't look like

she really had her heart into it though. The boy next to her was a couple inches taller. I could only describe him in one word. Dark. Everything he wore was black. His hair was black and

even his eyes were a dark shade slightly lighter than black. His face was utterly devoid of emotion. The boy next to him was even taller. He had short, slightly spiked strawberry blonde

hair. His eyes were a bright blue hidden behind a slight haze. Next to him was a shorter boy with blonde hair and blue eyes. He looked around the age of 8. On the right side of the girl,

was a girl slightly shorter than she was. She looked around 10 or 11. She had brown skin and a mess of black hair pulled back into a ponytail. Positioned beside her was a young girl with

blonde curls and blue eyes.

I staggered back so that my body was hitting the wall behind me. "Where am I?" I demanded this with a slight tremor in my voice. I was scared and confused. I couldn't remember how I

got there, or for that matter, why my head was hurting.

The oldest girl answered my question. "You're in a cave."

"Well, jeez. Thanks for stating the obvious. Ok, well then, who are you?" They all just looked at me in confusion for a second. Then the oldest girl opened her mouth to answer me again

but was interrupted by the older boy with strawberry blonde hair.

"Give her a couple seconds. She hit her head really hard."

That threw me. I hit my head? I mean, I guess that's why my head hurt. But knowing that I hit my head in some mysterious way didn't do anything to make me feel better. And what did

he mean by "Give her a couple seconds"? I stood there and tried to think of how I hit my head. The last thing I remembered was running into an alleyway after…it happened. I inwardly

flinched. After a few moments of intense thinking, I was still lacking in the memory department. I started to get worried. Maybe…maybe they brainwashed me! They did something! I faced

them and put on the glare I only unleashed in special cases.

"What did you do to me!! Give me back my me-" That was when they hit me. Everything that happened after I ran into that alley rushed to the surface. I remembered all of them. I

remembered that Angel could read minds. I remembered Max and Fang retrieving my medication from my house. I remembered them chasing me. I remembered climbing the fence. And

yes, I remembered falling on my face like a doofus.

The last thing I remembered was the wings. The freaking _wings. _I heard myself gasp out loud. They had to be angels. They just _had_ to be.

"Oh. Oh my God." I began to shake. This was my last chance. This was my last chance to apologize to my mom. I rushed towards Max and dropped to my knees.

"Please! Please, please, _please_ tell my mom I'm sorry. Tell her that if I could go back in time I would do anything to save her even if it meant d-dying too!" I was openly sobbing now. They

wracked my entire body. I just kept on repeating _please_ over and over again. She had to tell my mom. She _had_ to.

That was when Angel, the youngest girl, came over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder. I looked up at her through my tears for I was still kneeling on the ground. She was looking

at me with horribly sad eyes.

"Iris…we're…we're not angels."

I just stared at her. "What? B-but I saw your wings…" Now everybody was looking at me with sad eyes, even Fang, just not as intense as the others.

"Yes, but we're not angels. I'm sorry," Max said gently. I couldn't believe it. Everything I was had just depended on the idea of this message being taken to my mom. I would never speak

to my mom again. And it's all my fault. I never apologized, and now I never could.

I quickly stood up and bolted for the entrance of the cave. I planned on running. Running as far as my feet could take me. Running so that the others couldn't catch me. Nothing could stop

me.

That is, until I saw that this particular cave I was situated in was about 100 feet from the ground. I hesitated for a split second, but then continued running. My mind was a one-way track.

I didn't care that I was about to lunge off the edge of a cliff. All I knew was that I had to get out of there, no matter what.

I was overwhelmed with déjà vu when I heard frantic yelling and footsteps running behind me. I ran the last few feet then _whoosh!_ I was free-falling. I closed my eyes. The air surged

around my body, rippling my clothes. Honestly, it was the most exhilarating yet strangely peaceful experience I had ever had. I smiled while thinking that if I was going to die, I wanted it

to be like this.

But that thought was short-lived when I collided with something hard. Not the ground. A person. The wind was knocked out of me from the collision. I found that kind of ironic considering

just moments before I felt as if my entire being was composed of wind. The strong arms wrapped around my middle and I was surging upwards. We landed in the cave with a thump. My

rescuer placed me on the floor. I gazed upwards to see who it was surprised to see that it was Iggy, the blind one. He looked incredibly angry and slightly shocked.

"What the hell, Iris! What were you _thinking_?" He practically yelled this.

I didn't respond. I didn't know what I was thinking. All I knew was that I had wanted out. I didn't particularly want to die. It was just that the cliff was there and my mind was in such a

whir. I couldn't think clearly enough to come to the logical conclusion of stopping. But I didn't tell them that. I just remained silent.

"Yea, what were you thinking? I mean, seriously! You jumped off of a cliff! We thought you were gonna stop but then you kept running! It was soo scary! And then you just vanished over

the edge! And you _don't _have wings. Well, I only say that because we do but you already know that. You would have died if Iggy didn't catch you. It was crazy! As soon as he heard you

continue running he ran after you and-" Nudge was cut off by Gazzy's hand covering her mouth.

Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel all looked frightened. Max looked angry, sad, and slightlyshocked. Fang may have expressed any one of those emotions earlier but now he was just as

emotionless as ever.

"Iris, you just tried to commit suicide." Max said this as if she was trying to clarify what I just did.

"No, I-" I didn't know how to explain. I felt horrible for jumping off a freaking cliff in front of little kids. What was wrong with me? I hung my head.

"I'm so sorry for doing that in front of them." I gestured to the younger kids. "I-I wasn't thinking." I looked up and saw Max glaring at me. Now what did I do?

"Are you meaning to tell me that you're sorry for jumping off a cliff in front of us, but _not _just jumping off a cliff in general? If we let you go would you kill yourself?"

Why would she care if I died? If I just discontinued to exist, who would really care? But I didn't want to kill myself. I didn't want to be weak. But if I just so happened to die, so be it.

Angel came to my side. "We _would_ care if you died. We would." I looked up at her.

"Please stop reading my mind." I stood up and looked at Max. "If I promise not to kill myself will you let me go?" I needed to get out of here. Max looked like she was thinking.

Then she said, "Only if you tell us what happened."

I just looked at her. _What happened._ No, never. I could never tell them what happened. With one last look at all of them I walked over to a back corner of the cave and sat down. They all

started whispering to each other. I couldn't make out what they were saying. I put my head in my hands and tried to come up with possible escape plans. After a while, I finally decided it

was wisest to wait until night. Then, I would try to find some hand-holes or something that could get me to the bottom of the cliff. In the meantime, I figured I would try to get some

sleep. I stretched out on the floor and turned my body so that it faced the wall. When sleep finally came, I was lurched into yet another nightmare.

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**Ok. I'm sorry it took me so long to post this. It's just that I had band camp last week from 6 to 10 and all this week from 3 to 10. So it might take me a little while to get the next chapter up, too. I didn't particularly like this chapter. If you agree please tell me. And if you don't agree tell me, too. I would love to get more reviews. Thanks!**


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